Eddie Andrews calls on Adam Steen to drop campaign for Iowa governor
Speaking to a ballroom filled with Iowa Republican donors in Des Moines, gubernatorial candidate Eddie Andrews on Thursday night called on fellow candidate Adam Steen to drop out of the race.
Andrews questioned Steen’s character and ability to lead in the wake of Steen’s campaign staff’s involvement in a procedural attempt to keep Andrews off the primary ballot.
Andrews, a state legislator from Johnston, and Steen, a former state agency director from Runnells, are among the five Republicans seeking their party’s nomination in Iowa’s open-seat gubernatorial election.
“I think if the first words out of your mouth are not, ‘I resign from a candidacy,’ then I think you need some other counseling,” Andrews said during his remarks at the Republican Party of Polk County’s Lincoln Dinner fundraiser at the Holiday Inn-Des Moines Airport and Conference Center on Thursday night.
Eddie Andrews, a state legislator from Johnston and Republican candidate for governor, speaks at the Republican Party of Polk County’s Lincoln Dinner fundraiser at the Holiday Inn-Des Moines Airport and Conference Center in Des Moines on Thursday, March 26, 2026.
Andrews later told reporters after the event, “If (Steen) had honor, he would drop out.”
“That’s a severe character flaw that should be nowhere near (the Iowa Governor’s mansion on) Terrace Hill,” Andrews told reporters. “And then he used (words in a statement) like ‘misleading’ instead of just saying he committed a bold-faced lie. What a wuss.”
The drama between Andrews and Steen hung over Thursday night’s event, where all five Iowa Republican gubernatorial candidates had been invited to speak.
One day prior, Andrews survived a challenge to his candidate nominating signatures — brought by a donor to Steen’s campaign — that threatened Andrews’ spot on the primary election ballot.
To appear on the ballot, candidates for public office in Iowa must obtain a prescribed number of signatures from voting-eligible residents. Once those signatures are submitted, they can be challenged by any Iowa residents who believe any are erroneous or do not meet the requirements established in state law. Any such challenge is reviewed by a state panel, and successful challenges result in the candidate being kept off the primary election ballot.
David Bush, a West Des Moines man who donated $5,000 to Steen’s campaign in October and supports Steen’s candidacy, challenged Andrews’ signatures. The State Objection Panel on Wednesday accepted just enough of Andrews’ nominating signatures for him to survive the challenge and remain on the ballot.
Steen’s campaign on Wednesday issued a statement claiming Bush’s decision to challenge Andrews’ signatures was made “independently” of the Steen campaign. However, the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office confirmed that while Bush filed the challenge, Steen campaign staffers previously requested Andrews’ signatures and were the only individuals to do so.
On Thursday night, just as the fundraising event was beginning, Steen’s campaign posted on social media a statement from Steen clarifying that his campaign staff provided copies of the nominating signatures to Bush.
“A member of our campaign stated Mr. Bush acted ‘independently,’ which I believed to be true,” Steen wrote in the post. “While Mr. Bush did pursue this challenge on his own accord, by providing the petitions to Mr. Bush, it is clear that statement was misleading and there will be internal communication, changes, and accountability for those actions.”
Adam Steen, a former state agency director from Runnells and Republican candidate for governor, speaks at the Republican Party of Polk County’s Lincoln Dinner fundraiser at the Holiday Inn-Des Moines Airport and Conference Center in Des Moines on Thursday, March 26, 2026.
Steen did not address the situation during his nearly 10 minutes of remarks during Thursday night’s fundraiser, which came after Andrews’ remarks. Steen spoke to reporters after the event and fielded a number of questions on the topic, including on Andrews’ calls for him to withdraw from the campaign and why he did not address the situation during his speech.
“I’ve never run for office before. This is my first time in a political campaign,” said Steen, the former director of the Iowa Department of Administrative Services. “One thing I’ve noticed is that when you start to gain momentum, when you start to take the lead, those behind you try to fight and punch to get up on your platform. And the last thing I’m going to do is bother myself with any of these little weird arguments and things like that. I’m going to continue to cast forward a message across the state that Iowans want and need to hear. …
“To me, I’m on to bigger and better things. I have no desire to have this conversation with anyone else,” Steen added. “We’ve got bigger fish to fry. We got bigger things to do for the state.”
Zach Lahn, a business owner from Belle Plaine and Republican candidate for governor, speaks at the Republican Party of Polk County’s Lincoln Dinner fundraiser at the Holiday Inn-Des Moines Airport and Conference Center in Des Moines on Thursday, March 26, 2026.
Two other Republican candidates for governor, business owner Zach Lahn of Belle Plaine and pastor Brad Sherman of Williamsburg, also spoke at Thursday night’s event.
Brad Sherman, a pastor from Williamsburg and Republican candidate for governor, speaks at the Republican Party of Polk County’s Lincoln Dinner fundraiser at the Holiday Inn-Des Moines Airport and Conference Center in Des Moines on Thursday, March 26, 2026.
U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra of Hull, considered by many to be the front-runner in the campaign, did not appear at the event, saying he was needed at the U.S. Capitol. He recorded remarks that were played on large video screens.
Republican incumbent Gov. Kim Reynolds, who has held the post since 2017, is not seeking reelection. Reynolds also spoke early in Thursday night’s event; she left before the candidates vying to replace her spoke.
During her remarks, Reynolds highlighted accomplishments achieved during her tenure and implored Iowa Republicans to turn out for this fall’s election and support whichever GOP candidate earns the nomination to run for governor.
State Auditor Rob Sand, of Decorah, is the Democrats’ candidate.
“Once the primary is over — and you’re going to hear over and over, I hope — we need to come together and make sure that every Republican and independent and Democrat in Iowa knows why electing Republican candidates matter,” Reynolds told the crowd.
